Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether his Department plans to make payments (a) Morgan McSweeney and (b) Tim Allan beyond their regular salaries.

Answered by Nick Thomas-Symonds - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office

It is a longstanding policy not to comment on individuals. The Model Contract for Special Advisers is published online and details the specific circumstances in which payments can be made to special advisers upon termination of employment.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, when she will publish the equalities impact assessment on the student loan repayment changes announced in Autumn Budget 2025.

Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

Plan 2 loans were designed and implemented by previous governments. Students in England starting degrees under this government have different arrangements.

Lower earning graduates remain protected by this change. Graduates only begin repaying once their earnings exceed the threshold, paying 9% of income above that level. As repayments remain income-contingent, if a borrower’s salary remains the same, their monthly repayments will also stay the same. Outstanding loans, including interest accrued, are cancelled at the end of the loan term, or in case of death or permanent disability, with no detriment to the borrower.

The department has produced the attached analysis regarding the lifetime impact of freezing the repayment and interest thresholds.

The department will release an equalities impact assessment, including the impact on lifetime repayments, alongside other borrower impacts for the Plan 2 repayment threshold and interest threshold freeze, as announced at the Autumn Budget. Published results may differ from those provided due to model and data updates.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what coordination exists between departments including the Department for Work and Pensions and HM Revenue and Customs in investigating suspected identity theft involving government digital services.

Answered by Satvir Kaur - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

This government takes identity theft, and the harm it can cause victims, seriously.

It is the responsibility of individual departments as to how they coordinate their policy and operational approaches in relation to identity theft involving government digital services.

The Public Sector Fraud Authority’s (PSFA) remit is to work with departments and public bodies to understand, prevent and reduce the impact of fraud. This is achieved by supporting public bodies to have the basics in place, build counter fraud capability and embed financial targets.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether her Department plans to introduce temporary or emergency exemptions to existing rules preventing pets from travelling on evacuation flights.

Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

All relevant requests for consular assistance are considered on a case by case basis, depending on the circumstances.